Person:Edward Mayer (6)

Biography of Edward Michael Mayer, as written by his son, Reece Mayer (January 1991)

Edward Michael Mayer, born Aug 15, 1892, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, son of Michael Mayer and Anna Magdalena Reusswig.

Edward Michael Mayer and family moved west in 1905. Edward was 13 at the time. He had finished the 6th grade in Pittsburgh but that ended his schooling. He said Geo. Tatko met them with teams and wagons, at the end of the Rail Road line at Cul De Sac, Idaho, near the Clearwater River and at the foot of Winchester Hill. Dad said before they finally built a railroad up on "the Prairie" that they had to haul their wheat and hogs to market by team and wagon down the Winchester Hill to Culdesac and Sweetwater.

About 1910, after five years farming on Camas Prairie, Michael Mayer moved his family to another farm east of old Roseberry, Idaho. Ed worked on farm with his Dad until he got married in 1916 and went to farming on his own.

Edward Michael Mayer and Effie Lillian Melverne Scott. Married Nov. 5, (or 6) 1916 at Roseberry, Idaho, 1/2 to 1 mile east of present day Donnelly.

In 1916 Roseberry was largest town in Long Valley. Van Wyck and Lardo were other villages in Long Valley. Today, they are gone. Roseberry replaced by Donnelly, 1 mi. west on new railroad. Van Wyck became Cascade, 1 mi. east on Railroad. And Lardo became McCall, 1 mile east on Payette Lake and end of the Railroad. Marriage performed at the home of Effie Scott's brother, G. K. (Kay) and wife Gertrude Coski Scott]]. Very good friend (and 2nd cousin) of Effie's, Gladys Bennett and Glady's beau, Guy Fairbrother, were witnesses.

Ed and Effie set uphousekeeping on a 160 A. ranch located 6 mi. S. of present day McCall, on N. Fork of the Payette River. Ranch was part of estate of Effie's father, D. G. Scott, who died early that yr. Jan 19, 1916, at Emmett, Idaho. When they were married, Ed had been farming with his dad Michael on the Mayer Farm of 640 A. 4 mi. east of Roseberry.

Jan 6, 1918, Edward Reece was born on the Ranch. When it came near time for second child to be born, Effie went to Emmett and stayed with her step-mother Annie. Ellen Anna was born Jan 10, 1920. Ed Mayer had taken 2 yr. old "Eddie" Reece over to his folks at the Roseberry Mayer family farm while he stayed at home to take care of the stock and "batched".

After Anna was born, Effie had a "nervous break-down", so called in those days and spent time in an Emmett nursing home and with her folks. Joe Bennett's parents, who lived only 2 miles from Ed and Effie's home in Long Valley, took the Baby for the next 6 months or so. (Linnie & Henry Bennett - Linnie was a Scott and Mom's 1st cousin) Poor Ed! His wife was 100 miles away in Emmett; his oldest child, "Eddie", was 15 miles down the Valley with his parents; the Baby was only 2 miles away tho; and Ed was "batching", farming, milking a few cows and raising hogs. During the summer of 1920, his sister Frieda came home from teaching her 1st school and lived with Ed.

In late August of 1920, Effie was well enough to come back home. Frieda left to return to teaching. Effie said she came back to Norwood siding on Railroad where Ed picked her up with horse and buggy. In those days, everyone traveled around Long Valley by Horse & buggy or team and wagon. The railroad from Nampa thru Emmett and on to the end at McCall was finished at McCall in 1914. It was a Godsend for the people of Long Valley to get people and freight to the lower country: Emmett, Nampa & Boise.

Ed picked up Effie at Normal siding, which was closest rail stop to their Ranch Home. (A few yrs ago, 30 miles of that R. Road between McCall and Cascade was abandoned and rails hauled away). They went across Valley (about 14 miles) to Ed's parents to pick up little Eddie. Then back up Valley to Linnie Bennett's to collect the baby, 8 mo's old.

1920 was a good year for farmers. Joe Bennett said he rented 40 A. across road from his folk's farm and planted it to wheat. That fall, wheat was a good price and he sold the crop for $5000.00 Most money he saw for yrs. Ed and Effie should have done as well also, because Ed and his dad Michael always planted wheat as their main crop. In 1921, a recession set in and wheat sold for only 10 cents bushel. Joe said people in Boise Valley were burning wheat instead of coal in their heating stoves because it was cheaper.

In winter of 1921-22, the Ed Mayer family moved to the Emmett Valley. They rented a house and in spring of 1922, Ed got a job at Boise-Payette saw mill. Hard times apparently forced the move as the ranch was eventually sold for taxes.

On April 19, 1923, Harold Scott Mayer was born at home, 1014 S. Boise Ave., Emmett, Idaho. Dad was at work at the Mill. About 9 o'clock that nite, Dad came up to the Lester Case's and took Anna and I home to see our new baby brother. A fine looking baby and was Dad proud--He was grinning all over and so was Mom.

Mom never did tell me why they moved from the Ranch to lower country. She did say winters were terrible and they were so isolated on that ranch, especially so in Winter. Dad told me once, when I asked, "Your Mother never did like it on the ranch. And she got home sick for her stepmother & sister Elizabeth (Lizzie) and Bro. Leonard."(Shorty)" It was too bad," he said "because we were just getting a good start on the ranch." Seeds of differences all ready being sown early in marriage. A farmer with only a 6th grade education married to a well educated school teacher!!

Mom always wanted to buy a house. Dad always said it was cheaper to rent. Or maybe it was the other way around. Anyway, they didn't agree, and always rented while living in Emmett. In 1927, we moved to a larger and better rented house, closer to town and schools at 522 So. Hays. It was about this time that Mom switched from being a Sunday Baptist-Methodist church goer to a 7th Day Adventist, and she took us kids along also to Sat. services. This was another area of disagreement. Dad was baptised and raised in the German Lutheran church. In the middle of the nite once, I was awakened by Dad and Mom arguing in their bedroom. Dad was telling Mom, in a loud voice, "Send those kids to church on Sunday." Couldn't hear what Mom said back but Dad said again, "Damnit, I said send those kids to Sunday school!" Guess he lost because Mom kept on marching us to Sabbath school after that anyway. Dad never went to church in Emmett but was always very friendly with Lutheran Minister Kellerman, who lived nearby.

In 1926, Dad bought his first car. 4 Dr. Willy Knight Overland with wooden spoke wheels. Made many trips to Long Valley and Boise. Cost $500 new. About 1927 or 28, Grandad Mike tried to get Dad to take over the Ranch but Dad didn't want it.

Ed Mayer was a Republican, but he didn't like Hoover.

In 1931, because of the depression, Boise-Payette mill shut down completely for over 2 yrs. 500 men out of work!! Dad was a good Odd Fellow lodge member. He was head of the Odd Fellow's section in the Emmett cemetery for yrs. He spent a lot of week-ends in the 20s, making an acre of sand, rocks and cheat grass into a nice green cemetery. In later yrs, the Lodge donated it to the city in exchange for them to care for it perpetually. One of Dad's good lodge friends was Henry Cutler, owner of a grocery store and Mayor at the time. Dad was fortunate. Mayor Cutler got Dad a job with the City working as a day laborer in the water, sewer and street dept. Eventually, thru good work and attrition he ended up being Chief of Police of Emmett. When he first started he got $125 a month. But during the depression that was good wages. In the late thirties, while Chief, he personally worked himself, in spare time, putting in a nice Rose Garden in the City Park.

Some time before Pearl Harbor time, Dad resigned as Chief of Police and went to Portland to work as a guard in the shipyards. He and Mom were separated. One Sat. morning in spring of '43 Dad's real good friend, Sheriff Boise Riggs served Mom divorce papers from Dad at Portland. Dad and Mary Parrot got married in Portland in 1944. They looked for a place to buy and ended up with nice house & 3 acres just out of town at 92nd & Crystal Springs Blvd. Dad had chickens & a nice garden and worked at Doernbeeker Furniture. Mary, a registered nurse, worked in a medical clinic. They became good Sunday church members and both even sang in the choir.

A yr or so before he died, on one of my sales trip thru there, Dad drove me up to Mt. Scott, Lincoln Memorial Cemetery. It was real close to where they lived. We went clear to the top (that was developed)( and he showed me the burial plots he and Mary had recently bought. He loved the view from up there, looking out over the city. That's when I knew he wasn't going back to Emmett to be buried near his parents.

See also: Footnotes on family of Edward Michael and Effie Scott Mayer, by Reece Mayer, January 1991

Baby Edward Mayer

Ed Mayer with Reece, baby Anna, 1920

Ed Mayer, Chief of Police, Emmett

Ed Mayer, about 1948

1. ↑ Effie Scott Mayer Bible, in Mayer Family Documents.
2. ↑ Emmett, Gem, Idaho, in United States. 1940 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication T627)
   HH 23.

   310 Main Street, rents at $25/mon, not a farm
   Mayer, Ed, head, 48, married, 6 yrs education, b. PA, 5 yrs ago lived in Emmett, Gem, ID, employed, chief of police for city, worked 52 weeks last year, $1500 income
   , Effie (informant), wife, 51, married, 1 yr college, b. MO, 5 yrs ago in Emmett, does housework at home
   , Harold, son, 16, 3 yrs High School, b. ID, five years ago in Emmett

3. ↑ ^3.0 3.1 Newspaper clipping - no title - handwritten date: Oct. 31 - 60.

   Emmett -- Services and interment will be conducted at Portland Thursday for Edward Michael Mayer, a former resident of Emmett and a peace officer here, who died at a Portland hospital Monday.
   Mr. Mayer . . . [moved] to Portland in 1943.
   In addition to his wife, Mary, he is survived by two sons, Reece of Medford, Ore. and Harold of Corvallis; on daughter . . . , six grandchildren; one great-grandchild; six sisters and one brother.

4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2} Memorial Service Card.

   In Memory of Edward M. Mayer
   Born 15 August 1892, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania
   Passed Away 31 October 1960, Portland, Oregon
   Services Thursday, November 3, 1960, Kendall Community Presbyterian Church
   Pallbearers: Paul Zumwalt, O. O. Voss, Oliver Domries, Frank Miller, Harold Gleason
   Concluding Services Private, Lincoln Memorial Park

5. ↑ ^5.0 5.1 Baptisms 1880-1971, in Smithfield United Church of Christ (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). Church records, 1832-1971 [Smithfield United Church of Christ]. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1971)
   p. 168, #146 (FHL Film #0885048).

   Edward Michael, born 15 Aug. 1892, bap. 25 Sept. 1892, parents Michael Mayer (Ungarn) and Anna Marie Magdel. Reusswig, Sponsors: John Lickert and Marie Lickert

6. ↑ Pittsburgh, in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, United States. 1900 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration Publication T623)
   Allegheny City, Sixth Ward, ED 64, Sheet 10; HH 137.

   Address 39 Wolfe Street
   Mayer, Michael, white male, head, born April 1863, age 37, married 12 years, born Germany, both parents born Germany, immigrated 1882, resident US 18 years, naturalized, occupation carpenter, able to read, write, and speak English, living in a house
   , Mechilena [sic], wife, white female, born February 1862, 38 years old, married 12 years, had 5 children, all living, born Germany, both parents born Germany, immigrated 1865, resident US 35 years, able to read, write, speak English
   , Lillian C., daughter, white female, born June 1890, age 9, born Pennsylvania, at school
   , Edward, son, born August 1892, 7 years old, born Pennsylvania, at school
   , Annie B., daughter, born July 1895, age 4, born Pennsylvania
   , Freeda [sic], daughter, born November 1896, age 3, born Pennsylvania
   , Hilda, daughter, born September 1899, 8 months old, born Pennsylvania

7. ↑ Cold Springs Precinct, Nez Perce, Idaho, in United States. 1910 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication T624)
   HH 170, Family 171.

   Mayer, Michael, head, male, white, age 47, married 21 years (first marriage), born Hungary-Bulgaria, both parents born Hungary Bulgaria, speaks English, farmer, able to read and write, rents farm
   , Magdalena, wife, female, white, age 49, married 21 years (first marriage), eight children (all living), born Germany, both parents born Germany, immigrated 1864, Naturalized, speaks English, able to read and write
   , Edward, son, male, white, age 17, single, born Pennsylvania, speaks English, farm labourer, able to read and write
   , Bertha, daughter, white female, age 14, single, born Pennsylvania, speaks English, able to read and write, attends school
   , Frieda, daughter, white female, age 13, single, born Pennsylvania, speaks English, able to read and write, attends school
   , Hildegard, daughter, white female, age 10, single, born Pennsylvania, speaks English, able to read and write, attends school
   , Henry, son, white male, age 7, single, born Pennsylvania, attends school
   , Marie, daughter, white female, age 5, single, born Pennsylvania
   , Erma, daughter, white female, age 3, single, born Idaho

8. ↑ ^8.0 8.1 United States. Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918. (Washington, D.C.: National Archives Microfilm Publication M1509, 1987-1988).

   Edward Michael Mayer of McCall [Idaho], b. 15 Aug [year cut off], Pittsburg, PA, Farmer, married, white, tall height, medium build, brown eyes, brown hair. Register 5 June 1917, McCall, Idaho

9. ↑ Norwood Notes, in Payette Lake star (McCall, Idaho)
   8 Mar, 29 Mar 1918.

   Friday, 8 March 1918
   Ed Mayer was down to Roseberry Tuesday.
   Leonard Scott is visiting a few days with Ed Mayer.
   Friday 29 March 1918
   Ed Mayer and family visited Sunday at the home of Guy Fairbother.

10. ↑ Cascade News (Cascade, Idaho)
    8 July 1927.

    Donnelly News: Ed Mayer and family of Emmett are spending several days here visiting relatives and friends.

11. ↑ Emmett, Gem County, Idaho, in United States. 1930 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication T626)
    HH 248, Family 271.

    223 Hayes Street (seem to be four house/families at this address)
    Mayer, Edward, head, rents, $16/month, white male, age 37, married, 1st marriage at age 24, able to read and write, born PA, fathers birth place unknown, mother born Germany, speaks English, laborer in lumber mill, worked yesterday
    , Effie S., wife, white female, age 42, married, 1st marriage at age 29, able to read and write, born MO, fa born PA, mo b. US, speaks English
    , E. Reece, daughter [sic], white female, 12, single, attends school, able to read and write, born ID
    , E. Anna, daughter, white female, age 10, single, attends school, able to read and write, born ID
    , Harold S., son, white male, age 6, single, attends school, born ID.

12. ↑ United States. World War II Draft Registration Cards.

    Edward Michael Mayer, 45, b. Allegheny, PA, 15 Aug 1896, resident 931 22 Ave, Portland, Multnomah, OR; phone: at 3870
    Contact Person: Miss Bertha Mayer, 1016 Franklin St., Boise, ID
    EmployerL Oregon Shipbuilding Corp, Portland, Mult.
    Signed 26 April 1642, Portland, Oregon
    Description: 6 foot 3 inches tall, weight 210 pounds, Hazel Eyes, brown hair, dark complexion

13. ↑ ^13.0 13.1 Death Certificate, in Oregon Vital Records, Portland, Oregon.

    Edward Michael Mayer, died Emanuel Hospital, Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon;
    resident 9008 S. E. Crystal Springs Blvd., Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon.
    Date of Death: Octorer 31, 1960.
    White male, married. Social Security No: 541-20-1982, occupation Finisher, in Furniture Mfg.
    Spouse's name: Mary.
    Born August 15, 1892, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Michael Mayer and Lena Rueswig; US citizen.
    information provided by Mary Mayer, wife.
    Cause of Death: Congestive failure.
    Burial 11-3-60 at Lincoln Memorial Cemetery, Portland;
    Funeral Arragnements, Jacobson Family, Portland.